Labour Party Presidential Candidate in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, has claimed that Nigeria is the lowest per capita consumer of electricity globally. He while taking a swipe at President Bola Tinubu over his broken promise on power supply. On his X (formerly Twitter) handle on Saturday, Obi wrote: “Tinubu in Jos confirms ‘Don’t vote for me’ prediction on power supply. During the 2023 campaign, President Tinubu made a clear electoral promise: ‘If I don’t give you constant electricity in four years, don’t vote for me for a second term.’ When he took office in 2023, Nigeria had a power supply of over 4,000 megawatts and lower tariffs.
”Today, the electricity supply is less than 4,000 megawatts on average, and Nigerians are paying higher tariffs. Nigeria currently has the lowest per capita electricity consumption in the world, at below 30% of the African average. Africa’s average is 617kWh; Nigeria’s is 144kWh. This means Nigerians consume less electricity than other Africans. At a time when Nigerians are enduring days without power, our leaders cannot even stay a few minutes without it.” As of the time of this fact check, the post had generated over 533,000 views, 24,900 likes, 14,400 reposts, 1,343 quotes, and 696 bookmarks. Nigeria has long struggled with unstable electricity supply, often attributed to challenges such as inadequate gas supply, transmission constraints, and infrastructure deficits. Findings Due to the public importance of the claim made by Obi, Daily Trust verified its accuracy using available official data. Data from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) shows that Nigeria’s electricity supply stood at 4,387.91 megawatts (MW) in the second quarter of 2023, around the time President Tinubu assumed office. The regulator also noted an available generation capacity of about 4,901MW in its latest factsheet. However, data from the Nigerian Independent System Operator (NISO) indicates that as of April 3, 2026, power supply fluctuated between a low of 4,071.74MW and a peak of 4,584.40MW. Notably, electricity generation has, at times in 2026, dropped below the 4,000MW threshold. For instance, NISO reported that total generation stood at 3,940.53MW at 5:00 a.m. on March 5, 2026, due to persistent gas supply constraints affecting thermal power plants. The grid operator attributed the drop to ongoing fuel supply challenges, stating that several generating stations were operating below capacity.
On per capita electricity consumption
Available data on the portal of the International Energy Agency (IEA) consistent with Obi’s claim. Libya has the highest per capita electricity consumption at 3796KWH while Chad has the least at 14KWH contrary to the former governor’s claim that “Nigerians consume less electricity than other Africans”. Nigeria ranks 25th out of 37 African countries in electricity consumption per capita based on the 2023 IEA dataset, recording just 0.144 MWh per person (144KWH) and placing it in the lower third of the continent. This below top performers such as Libya (3.796 MWh) and South Africa (3.247 MWh), as well as mid-tier peers like Ghana (0.565 MWh) and Senegal (0.410 MWh), with Nigeria instead clustering closer to lower-consuming countries including Kenya (0.190 MWh) and Tanzania (0.135 MWh). The country ranked 136 globally with Tanzania and Burkina Faso ranking 137 and 138 respectively. Verdict
Claim that electricity supply dropped below 4000MW under Tinubu is MISLEADING While generation has occasionally fallen below 4,000MW in 2026, overall data shows fluctuations both above and below that mark, similar to levels recorded in 2023. The claim of a clear decline is not fully supported by the evidence. Also, the claim that Nigeria is the lowest per capita consumer of electricity globally, as well as the assertion that Nigerians consume less electricity than other Africans, is FALSE.